WASHINGTON, DC – June 13, 2011 – Today Women In Government launches its Lupus Awareness and Education Toolkit, aimed at providing legislators with the knowledge and tools they need to enact effective policies to combat this devastating disease.

Over 1.5 million Americans are living with lupus, and over 16,000 new cases are diagnosed each year. 90 percent of lupus cases are women, most often between the ages of 15 and 44. Minority women are two to three times more likely to have lupus, and their symptoms tend to be more severe. Lupus costs America’s healthcare system over $30 billion annually.

In order to facilitate effective policy action, Women In Government has created the Lupus Awareness and Education Toolkit for state legislators. The Toolkit provides information about lupus’s prevalence, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment in order to bring legislators up to speed on the most current knowledge available. It also includes sample legislation from several states, as well as outreach materials for constituents.

“Lupus is an under-recognized, under-diagnosed disease,” said Marjorie Maginn, President of Women In Government. “The Lupus Toolkit provides legislators with the tools they need to raise awareness about lupus and educate the public through sound policy.”

The Lupus Awareness and Education Toolkit can be accessed at: http://www.womeningovernment.org/ad/lupus/toolkit.

Contact: Libby Derting, Director of Policy & Programs
Phone: 202-333-0825 x248
E-mail: lderting@womeningovernment.org